CarComplaints.com Notes: You don't want to get 2009 and 2010 Altima owners started about their cars. That is, unless, you know how to start their cars.

These vehicles can suddenly become impossible to start thanks to a faulty electronic steering column lock (ESCL). Nissan dealers will gladly replace it, but that will run you $1000.

More info & videos about the Nissan ESCL defect are available over at NissanProblems.com.

It's one of the many reasons this car was named CarTalk's Turd of the Week and given our Beware of this Clunker badge. Two dubious honors.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
10 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
6 / 1
Average Mileage:
52,759 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2009 Nissan Altima seat belts / air bags problems

seat belts / air bags problem

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2009 Nissan Altima Owner Comments (Page 1 of 4)

problem #80

Oct 122023

Altima

  • 160,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owned a 2009 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that while driving approximately 20 mph, an unknown Chevrolet Postal truck pulled out and crashed into the vehicle. The steering wheel air bag exploded and hit his face. The contact sustained injuries to his face, wrist, chest, and hand during the impact, and medical attention was provided at the hospital. A police report was filed. The driver was able to pull the vehicle over safely. There was no reported fire, but the fire department was on the scene. The vehicle was towed to his residence. The contact called the local dealer, who stated that there were no recalls. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was deemed a total loss.The manufacturer was not notified. The approximate failure mileage was 160,000.

- Franklin, WI, USA

problem #79

Dec 032017

Altima

  • miles
Passenger airbag will not come on when you sit in seat

- Sebring, FL, USA

problem #78

May 182023

Altima

  • 100,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the air bag warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

- Tampa, FL, USA

problem #77

Mar 102023

Altima

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The passenger seat airbag light is blinking on the dashboard as well as the passenger airbag on/off light is on meaning that the passenger airbag if off. Dealership found code B1018 for the occupant sensor. They told me the passenger seat cushion needs to be replaced. This is a huge safety concern as the airbag will not deploy if I were to get into an accident due to a faulty sensor.

- Visalia, CA, USA

problem #76

Jan 212022

Altima

  • miles
So while I am driving with a passenger my sign on my dashboard shows that there is no airbag for my passenger

- Redwood City , CA, USA

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problem #75

Oct 152021

Altima

  • miles
My airbag light suddenly started blinking on my dashboard. For several years I have had problems with the orange center passenger air bag light working intermittently. I had a Nissan dealer inspect it and was told there was nothing wrong with it. It continued to act sporadically as before the visit unable to detect if a passenger was in the seat or not. Now, as stated above my red airbag light blinks continuously on the instrument panel. After taking it to a different repair shop, I was told it was the Seat Occupant Sensor and it needed to be removed and replaced. The SRS Passenger Discriminating Sensor needed to be replaced also. I was told I needed to replace the seat cushion (passenger side). This problem needs to be addressed for obvious safety concerns as the same problem keeps happening to many of Nissan's vehicles above and beyond their other recall campaign for newer models with the same problem. Yes, my car is out of warranty but that shouldn't matter as this is a very URGENT SAFETY ISSUE of a known defect that Nissan needs take responsibility for. My car has very low mileage (86,000 & 12 yrs. old) and rarely do I have a passenger in the defective seat. Now I can't have anyone use it for this safety reason. The cost of a repair by Nissan dealer is upwards of $2,000.

- Valrico, FL, USA

problem #74

Feb 212021

Altima

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The passenger airbag seems to be faulty due to a sensor fail. So the airbag light malfunctions and the airbag won't work. Since this is clearly a safety issue, I was hoping you would look into a recall. It is a problem a significant number of 2009 Nissan Altima owners seem to have (see https://M.carcomplaints.com/Nissan/Altima/2009/seat_belts_air_bags/air_bags.shtml).

- Boston, MA, USA

problem #73

Jan 302020

Altima

  • 125,000 miles
The vehicle has had problems with the passenger airbag several times even if someone was sitting in it. The light would flash off and on and then go off. Now the light stays on and also shows the airbag light on the instrument panel now as well. Have had it checked by the dealership and they said the sensor is faulty. They want around $2500 to replace the seat cushion and cant ensure that it will match. This is a ridiculous amount as well as a safety issue. After researching this is a ongoing problem among numerous Nissan owners of this year. The cars value is not worth it and it cant be sold to anyone else due to the safety issue of the airbag light. The connections have been checked and nothing is loose or broken. I believe a recall needs to be done on all vehicles affected with this issue. This is a liability that would fall on Nissan due to they have recalled some models and years already with this issue but refuse to fix this problem. I have been trying to get a remedy to this issue for many months now only to be told by Nissan they cant do nothing.

- Dothan, AL, USA

problem #72

Feb 012019

Altima

  • 160,000 miles
1. the airbag is keep blinking at all times. 2. load noise from exhaust manifold when start the engine and engine is cold. 3. a few weeks after a rainy day, when the weather gets hot, inside the car smell very bad as if there is a rotten or dead animal in the car.

- El Sobrante, CA, USA

problem #71

Feb 202019

Altima

  • 163,000 miles
I first started noticing the passenger airbag light flashing off and on when I would place a heavy item in the seat. I was in my driveway with the car running. Then the same thing happened with a passenger in the seat. Then it eventually was saying that the passenger airbag was turned off wither there was a passenger or not. I took to a Nissan dealership and they told me it was an occupant sensor fail B1018 and I would have to get it fixed before my next state inspection or it wouldn't pass. They want $2879.49 just for the part. The trade in value is not worth that much according to kbb. My understanding is that other Nissan owners are having the same problem. This is clearly a fail that Nissan should take responsibility for.

- Suffolk, VA, USA

problem #70

Jan 012018

Altima

  • 120,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

My passenger side air bag light or airbag light keeps blinking/flashing for over a year. The Nissan dealer wants to charge $160 to look at it. It just started blinking one day.

- Tampa, FL, USA

problem #69

Jun 272019

Altima

  • 150,000 miles
Upon starting vehicle, the red airbag indicator light never stops flashing and passenger airbag off light is illuminated, even with adults in both front seats. Problem continues while driving and with subsequent use. Sudden failure of airbag sensors.

- Charlotte, NC, USA

problem #68

Mar 012009

Altima

  • miles
The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that the air bag indicator illuminated. Route 17 Nissan (45 NJ-17, hasbrouck heights, NJ 07604, 1-(855) 247-9368) was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not included in any air bag recalls. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified and stated that the VIN was excluded from an air bag recall campaign. The failure mileage was not available.

- River Edge, NJ, USA

problem #67

Jun 012019

Altima

  • 150,000 miles
Takata recall

- Lafayette, LA, USA

problem #66

May 102019

Altima

  • 101,000 miles
The airbag warning light is flashing indicating there is a problem with the airbag system. A scan of the vehicle shows a problem with the occupant sensor which is the sensor in the passenger seat. This is a problem with almost every year of Nissan Altima and there are multiple recalls for this problem but Nissan said this vehicle is not included in the recalls. This is ridiculous when they obviously have had continuing problems with this part.

- Lake Mary, FL, USA

problem #65

Mar 102019

Altima

  • 104,912 miles
2009 Nissan Altima passenger airbag sensor issue. The airbag light that indicates when the airbags are on/off remains lit at all times. This includes nothing in the seat, and when a person is riding in seat. After inspection dealership confirmed it was the passenger side occupancy sensor; a short occurred within the unit. (see diagnostic information pictured) the vehicle is affected by this issue at all times and under all circumstances.

- Hiram, GA, USA

problem #64

Sep 192018

Altima

  • miles
The passenger airbag OCS has quit working causing the passenger air light to stay on saying passenger airbags are off and the red airbag light to flash. Called dealer and they say sensor has went out in passenger seat but they need to look at it. My vehicle is unsafe to be on the road being the airbag system is faulty. I'm reporting because I know not only one and Nissan should be responsible for fix for cars like mine. They already recalled newer models and they need go back further in the year models

- Cochran, GA, USA

problem #63

Feb 012019

Altima

  • 118,000 miles
Front passenger seat air bag sensors faulty, light indicates air bag off (console amber), also flashing red light in instrument cluster, it's a safety issue, no recalls yet but in the forums it's a lot of people complaining about it, also the whole seat had to be replaced, the cost it's more than $3,000.

- Grapevine, TX, USA

problem #62

Nov 152018

Altima

  • 190,000 miles
Takata recall... I was hit from behind by a commercial trk doing 50 mph I was going 5 mph getting ready to make a left hand turn, when hit. No airbags deployed & the shoulder harness on the seat belt failed to lock. Resulting in concussion, serious back, neck & hip injuries.. two complete safety failiers when hit at 50+ mph. This is completely unacceptable. ## VIN failed ## Nissan Altima 2009 ##

- Rochester, WA, USA

problem #61

Sep 202012

Altima

  • 2,500 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that the passenger side air bag indicator remained illuminated and the driver's side air bag indicator flashed continuously. The vehicle was taken to weston Nissan (3650 weston rd, davie, fl 33331, (954) 888-6800) and the contact was informed initially that the repair would be covered since it was under warranty when the vehicle was bought back in 2012. When the contact finally called to schedule an appointment, the dealer stated that they would charge for the recall repair. The manufacturer stated that there was nothing they could do since there was no recall and the vehicle was out of warranty. The failure mileage was 2,500.

- Davie, FL, USA

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